All the thrills of off-roading started with the Jeep, and they keep on coming. A celebration of off-road Jeeps and the people who drive them, this book features the vehicles, personalities, events, and maneuvers that make up the Jeep universe of competitive and recreational off-roading. The fact-filled, photograph-packed book explores the joys of Jeep ownership, history, restoration, modification, off-road competition, events, clubs, and more. It includes information on popular accessories and performance enhancing modifications, the different generations and styles of Jeeps, off-road events and the professionals who compete in them. With color photographs of some of the most beautiful custom and restored Jeeps from around the country, The Joy of Jeep takes readers to the edge of this soul-stirring activity and shows why Jeep is America's favorite off-road vehicle. For backwoods exploration, supersized rockcrawling, and deep, mud-bogging, off-road action, Jeeps have been the vehicle of choice for over 60 years. Joy of Jeep takes the reader on a wild trip through the trails, competitions, and events that have made off-road Jeeps one of the most popular recreational vehicles around. With detailed vehicle specs, aftermarket parts and accessory tips, and contacts for all the major clubs and events, this is where any off-road Jeep lover should start. Tom Morr and Ken Brubaker take you into the heart of adventure Jeeping, exposing the wild stunts, environments, and trucks in full-color, mud-splattered glory. From restored Willys Wagons and chrome-covered CJs to beefed-up YJ Wranglers and nearly-stock Grand Cherokees and Libertys the entire Jeep family is covered. With expert knowledge, research, and beautiful photography, Morr and Brubaker celebrate the Jeeping lifestyle with Joy of Jeep. Tom Morr has contributed articles to many off-road enthusiast and trade publications worldwide. He lives in Thousand Oaks, California. Ken Brubaker has specialized in off-highway vehicle photography for the past 18 years. His work has appeared in a variety of magazines including Britains 4x4 & Off-Roader, Four Wheeler, 4Wheel & Off-Road, Off-Road, 4Wheel Drive & Sport Utility, Fullsize 4x4, and many others. He lives near Freeport, Illinois. INTRODUCTION Another Book about the Vehicle That "Wrote the Book..."? On the "last-thing-the-world-really-needs" list, a Jeep book ranks a close second behind another personal-injury lawyer. Twenty years ago, when the seeds for this book were sown, the story was different. The smattering of available Jeep books mostly addressed mechanical maintenance. Others focused on the vehicles' histories and relied mainly on PR info supplied directly from Jeep. At that time, the popular ad slogan referred to how Jeep "wrote the book on four-wheel drive," but few books were written about the actual vehicles. Thanks to the electronic age, insightful information about Jeeps of every pedigree is now easily accessible. In darker ages, the manufacturer-supplied facts and figures were often the most accurate available at the time of their dissemination. These specs didn't always match the vehicles that rolled off the assembly line. Thanks to the Internet and hands-on Jeep people (Toledo factory workers, military personnel, independent mechanics, intelligent parts-counter people, and other experts in the field, as opposed to mere mortal corporate marketing and PR employees), a glut of dead-on data is now available. Still, the Jeep rule of thumb remains that there's an exception to every rule. Particularly with the pre-AMC vehicles, many enthusiasts who've disassembled stock Jeeps have uncovered factory components that allegedly don't exist, according to the "official" information. Joy of Jeep is somewhat different from the existing books on the subject. It sprouted from automotive/adventure photographer Ken Brubaker's annual Jeep calendar and a previous Motorbooks book, Jeep Off-Road. I met Ken in 1989 at a Midwestern 4x4 show that he was covering for a local newspaper. At the time, Ken delivered nuts and bolts in an 18-wheeler during the day. However, he worked nights and weekends as a freelance photographer, and he shot everything from Cheap Trick concerts to high-school sports to autopsies. Over the eighteen ensuing years, we've periodically contributed words and images to various enthusiast magazines and books. Road trips with Ken mean red meat at every meal (as many as seven per day), and sleeping with the hotel room's air-conditioning at maximum blast, regardless of season. Photographically, Ken always strives to outdo himself. His calendars (which all true Jeep freaks should pick up annually, particularly now that Ken has a kid in college) and our previous book focus on custom vehicles in their native environments: sand, mud, snow, dirt, and rocks. This one goes behind the scenes to show what it takes to get Jeeps to those destinations--and what to do once there. Jeep-ifying Two genera